Suit filed over city action

Dunkin’ Donuts hours limited

The owner of a downtown Milwaukee Dunkin’ Donuts is seeking a court order to reverse city action that ended the shop’s early-morning hours — which city officials said attracted panhandlers and loiterers.

Laxmi Ma LLC, owned by Rekha Gabhawala, says in its Milwaukee County Circuit Court filing that the Common Council acted unfairly at its April 21 meeting when it voted to not renew the extended-hours license for Dunkin’ Donuts, 622 W. Wisconsin Ave. A city attorney denies that claim.

Residents of the nearby Wisconsin Tower condominiums, 606 W. Wisconsin Ave., and Ald. Robert Bauman, whose district includes downtown, said the shop’s extended hours, from midnight to 5 a.m., draw panhandling.

Also, Westown Association, a group of business operators and property owners on downtown’s west side, said panhandling can harm area redevelopment efforts.

Gabhawala says she’s taking steps to deal with the problem, with her attorney, Michael J. Whitcomb, saying two nearby bus stops are to blame for the block’s panhandling.

Gabhawala operates a four-story building at 612-624 W. Wisconsin Ave. with small, older apartments on the upper floors. She also runs four businesses on the building’s street level: Grand Avenue Market convenience store, Avenue Liquor, Avenue Coin Laundry and Dunkin’ Donuts.

The Common Council’s Licenses Committee, on a 3-2 vote, recommended a 30-day suspension of the extendedhours licenses for both Grand Avenue Market and Dunkin’ Donuts.

The full council instead dropped the proposed suspension for Grand Avenue Market, but also voted 12-2 not to renew the extendedhours license for Dunkin’ Donuts. That license expired April 30.

The council voted after Bauman proposed the change, saying that Gabhawala had earlier offered to drop one of the extendedhours licenses if she could keep the other.

Ald. Milele Coggs, a Licenses Committee member, said at the council meeting that Gabhawala had offered to drop the convenience store license if she could keep extended hours for Dunkin’ Donuts — the more lucrative of the two businesses. Coggs and Ald. Robert Puente, another committee member, were the only opposing votes on Bauman’s motion.

In the court filing, Gabhawala said the city didn’t provide advance notice of Bauman’s proposal.

The filing also said there was no substantial evidence showing that panhandling occurred outside of Dunkin’ Donuts during the extended hours.

The testimony from Wisconsin Tower residents about noise, panhandling and other problems supports the council’s action, said Adam Stephens, assistant city attorney.

Gabhawala’s request for an injunction is to be reviewed at a Friday hearing before Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Daniel Noonan. Facebook: facebook.com/jsbusiness Twitter: twitter.com/tomdaykin